Item 3 Appendix 'A'
1
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
The following table operates the "Traffic Light" system:
 Green denotes achieved (19);
 Amber denotes achieved but ongoing (14);
 Red denotes outstanding(3)
Recommendation 1: The service adopts a set of statements which define
core areas of service (Green)
The 17 statements originally devised by the Task Group were
reduced to 16, with two very similar statements being merged, at
the first meeting of the Review Group. These have been published
as an integral part of the Service Development Plan and as a
separate stand alone document which can be found on both the
Intranet and the Internet. Important features are the commitment to
free internet access, the extension of the service to visitors to
Lancashire and the delivery and development of services to meet
the needs of local communities.
Recommendation 2: LCLIS formally acknowledge that services are
extended to visitors to Lancashire (Green)
By removing any requirement for proof of identity when joining the
library, visitors are automatically also given the right to
membership. The policy re Visitors Deposits – whereby any visitor
to the county could access the library and information service on
payment of a deposit - has been reviewed and removed. Providing
easy access to internet, information and leisure and reading adds
value to the visitors' experience in Lancashire.
Recommendation 3: Review joining procedures (Green)
Barriers to joining the library were completely removed on 1st July
2007. Following a thorough risk assessment, there is no longer any
requirement to provide any proof of identity from anyone wishing to
join the library. This opens up access to services for those people
in the community who are often socially excluded. The effects of
the change in policy were reviewed and reported in July 2007.
An e mail from a satisfied customer:
“Dear County Library and Information Service Manager,
I have just enrolled with your library because I wish to access the
transport archives in Lancashire. I am delighted by the easy access
and generous help which you have provided, showing me how I
can use your service. I am also very pleased by the very speedy
response I received.
With thanks,
G B”
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
2
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
A comment from an originally sceptical colleague:
“When you had to send them (i.e. children) away for parental proof,
in a lot of cases you knew that you would probably never see them
again. Even though I wasn’t keen on the idea of not seeing any ID
initially, I do think that it has been worth while for this reason.”
Recommendation 4: The County Council protects the library resource
fund as part of future budget considerations and it is urged that real
term increases be sought to ensure LCLIS is able to proactively address
the national decline in borrowing materials from public libraries (Green)
County Councillor Chris Cheetham’s response was “Not sure I can
bind the Council forever but I accept the statement, which is less
prescriptive than the commentary. This is the first of many
recommendations with an impact on resources.”
Though our budget has not increased in real terms, the budget
reductions we have been asked to make exclude the book fund.
We undertake to keep under constant review procurement and
selection procedures to make sure we are getting the best value
from the funds we are given and making sure our borrowers have
the best available choice of material.
Recommendation 5: Extends the number and range of lifelong learning
opportunities which can be accessed through the service (Amber)
The range of lifelong learning opportunities has increased since the
publication of the Task Group report in 2006. This has been
generally at a local level where community need has dictated the
range of opportunities offered. This was especially evident during
last year's National Year of Reading programme when there were
over 1,000 events held in all libraries, each one of which presented
a learning opportunity.
The number of partners we work with continues to increase. We
now offer a variety of learning opportunities through partnership
working with, not only Lancashire Adult Learning, but also an
expanding range of other learning providers such as Lancashire
College, Lancaster University, National Family Learning Campaign,
and the University of the Third Age. Courses offered include Basic
IT Skills, Silver Surfers, English as a Second Language, and a
variety of craft sessions.
The range of courses offered has been widened by an increasing
number of in house sessions run by library staff, especially in
Family History and Local History. One example is where staff at
Cleveleys Library have introduced Cleveley’s Clickers in response
to customer demand. These are bookable one to one sessions on
IT for people of any age.
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
3
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
Recommendation 6 : Extended role of libraries in providing face to face
access to information (Amber)
The current restructure recognises the importance of the role of
libraries in delivering a range of information services by creating
the post of Information Manager, Customer Access. The remit of
the post is to introduce a range of information services which will
be available though all library outlets. These will include access
to the Acorn database used by the Customer Service Centre at
the Hub; Help Direct – a database used by Adult and Community
Services; TellyTalk – available in selected libraries; Tell Us Once
– a service which will make it easier for people who have suffered
a bereavement to notify relevant organisations ; Lantern wiCI –
the service's community information database.
Recommendation 7: LCLIS continue to develop Local Studies services
and make the material widely available through the use of ICT (Green)
Good progress is being made with the digitisation of the library
photographic collections so that the images are made more widely
available via the website www.lantern.lancashire.gov.uk/. This
ensures that access is made easier for anyone using the service
whether it is locally, nationally or internationally. The current
situation is that there are about 6,000 published images county
wide (excluding the FLOAT collections, which number a further
6,000 photos held at Fleetwood Library and Museum). Volunteers
are now being used to help scan and index the remaining 94,000
photographs held by libraries!
Recommendation 8: LCLIS regard Family and Local History as a core
service and that the development of services relating to Family and
Local History is regarded as a priority for the service (Green)
The restructuring of the service has taken account of the Task
Group's recommendations by creating a Community History
Manager in each of the twelve Districts. Their remit is to develop
community history collections within their District and support all the
libraries within the District in delivering community history services
tailored to the needs of the local communities.
Recommendation 9: LCLIS endorse the Select Committee’s view that
access to the Internet in libraries should be free (Green)
County Councillor Chris Cheetham’s response was “I accept the
proposed statement but there are financial implications as the
maintenance and revenue costs fall on the County Council without
proper central government support.”
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
4
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
The principle of free internet access was confirmed by the Task
Group and the Portfolio Holder and the practice of free internet
access through the People’s Network continues in Lancashire’s
libraries.
Recommendation 10 : Development of online services (Amber)
Once again the restructure of the service has recognised the
importance of online services by creating a post of Information
Manager – Online Services. This ensures that online services
continue to develop as technology advances.
The online reference library is an example of the currently available
online services. The number of visits to the site averaged 3,881 per
month during the initial period June 2006 to March 2007 and
averaged 4,807 visits per month during the following financial year
from April 2007 to March 2008. This is an increase of 24%. From
April 2008 to February 2009 the number of visits averaged 5,818 per
month, representing a further 21% increase. “Ancestry” is still the
most popular site and currently accounts for nearly 50% of total
sessions to all premium products.
.
Online joining was introduced on the 1st July 2007. By February
2009, nearly 3,000 people have successfully joined online – including
135 from abroad. There is now the facility to make enquiries, join the
library, select, reserve and renew items online.
Recommendation 11: Produce a Community Engagement Strategy
(Green)
The service’s Community Engagement Strategy has been produced
and published on the national Museums Libraries and Archives (MLA)
website as an exemplar of good practice. We have now started to
engage closely with local communities with Friends of Libraries being
established in a number of libraries including Lancaster, Colne,
Haslingden and St Annes. The emphasis of each Friends group
depends very much on the locality. In Colne there has been particular
interest in sourcing funding to hold IT classes for older people; in
Lancaster the emphasis is on arts related activities. Because each
Friends Group has a formal constitution, they are able to bid for funds
which, as County Council employees, officers are not. This has been
successful at St Annes, where the Friends Group has remodelled the
garden area.
In some libraries we have also formed focus groups representing
communities of interest, for example a young people’s forum at
Haslingden, and a heritage forum at Colne.
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
5
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
The same principles of community engagement are now being applied
to all libraries involved in the Regenerate scheme.
Recommendation 12: A corporate action plan is prepared to increase
Library and Information Service engagement in Surestart areas (Green)
The service agreed a library ‘offer’ to early years families and early
years’ settings which included Children's Centres. This is now being
implemented. There is increased partnership working with Children's
Centres across the county as evidenced by schemes such as the one
at Sharoe Green. In this case a Children's Centre has been built on
to the existing library with some shared facilities. Plans are in place
to similarly extend or incorporate Children's Centres into existing
library buildings at Trawden, Halton, Lostock Hall, Whalley,
Cleveleys, and Adlington.
Recommendation 13: The County Council should formally endorse and
encourage the development of the LCLIS Strategic Plan for Young
People (Amber)
The Strategic Plan for Young People has delivered a number of high
quality outcomes over the past three years which have been well
received by officers and members of the County Council. The result
has been investment in the service to develop it further. The Get It
Loud In Libraries (GILIL) project in Lancaster, which offers a live
music experience to young people in a safe venue, won the first Love
Libraries Award in 2007. Funding has been made available during
the last year to extend the project to other libraries in the County
including Skelmersdale, Burnley and Accrington. The success of the
project was also instrumental in attracting capital funding of £425,000
to create dedicated Youth Spaces. These are in the process of being
developed in Burnley, Accrington and Skelmersdale.
Recommendation 14: LCLIS, in consultation with the Directorate for
Children and Young People, give priority to the development of services
aimed at young people and young adults over the next five years
(Amber)
The development of services to young people has featured in the
Service Plan for the last three years. In addition to the GILIL project
there have been other notable projects. One is the Learning Places
project. This is a scheme which offers dedicated time for children
and young people to access study and learning support. There are
currently 13 libraries involved in the project. In October 2008 there
was a celebration of the young people's achievements at an event
held on a Sunday in Accrington Library. 35 young people and their
families attended and received acknowledgement of their
achievements.
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
6
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
Another major development is at Haslingden Library where Big
Lottery funding is being used to create an area for young people as
part of the national Headspace project. The project involves young
people themselves designing their own space within the library, and
developing and delivering the service within that space.
National consultation involving young people from Haslingden has
taken place with their views being sought on the name and
branding of the project. Locally, a group of young people have
formed a Youth Forum which has been involved in moving the
project on in Haslingden.
Other major capital projects include a joint use sixth form/library
facility which has been built in Burnley as part of the Building
Schools for the Future scheme. This opened in September 2008.
In Crawshawbooth, the service is working with Youth Services to
jointly fund a major refurbishment of the existing premises. This is
due to reopen in late Spring 2009.
Recommendation 15: LCLIS actively explores possibilities for
partnership working on a location by location basis (Amber)
Partnership working within the service has become increasingly
important at both local and strategic levels.
Locally, the National Year of Reading programme demonstrated
the vast range of partnership working which delivered on the whole
range of agendas from health and well being to the environment.
The BBC’s Breathing Places campaign has generated a number of
creative partnerships in local libraries. Examples include the
Wildlife Trust and RSPB at Clitheroe, Myerscough College and the
Countryside Rangers at Garstang, and Poulton Neighbourhood
Management at Morecambe. A developing partnership with
Lancaster Royal Infirmary & Morecambe Bay health community
has resulted in a successful bid to NW Health Care for a grant of
£14,000. This will allow the public library to work with the specialist
library to promote the Book Prescription Service.
At a strategic level, partnership working with the University of
Central Lancashire has enabled students at the university to have
instant access to the resources of the public library service in
Lancashire and vice versa.
Working in partnership with Children's Centres will deliver improved
services from a number of libraries (see Recommendation 12).
Working in partnership with other Directorates e.g. Children and
Young People, and Environment has resulted in successful projects
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
7
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
being realised (see Recommendations 26 and 31).
Recommendation 16: LCLIS reviews opening hours, in consultation
with users, and explores the possibility of introducing more evening and
weekend openings (Amber)
This is being done as and when the situation requires a review of
opening hours.
Staff at Savick Library collected evidence to demonstrate that the
community would prefer Monday morning opening to Friday
evening opening when many people were discouraged from going
to the library by gangs of youths. A report was presented to and
accepted by the Portfolio Holder and Lancashire Local Preston.
Similarly in Rossendale and South Ribble, feedback from Locality
Focus Groups prompted a thorough consultation exercise with
users, non users and staff. In Rossendale changes were made to
the opening hours of Crawshawbooth and Rawtenstall libraries; in
South Ribble the results of the consultation suggested that
extended opening hours rather than changes within budget were
required.
A review of opening hours at libraries which have been
regenerated will take place during the next twelve months.
When SRB funding to open the Harris Library on Sundays ceased,
the decision was taken to continue opening despite the fact that the
Museum is closed.
Recommendation 17: Involve volunteers to enhance services offered
(Green)
In May 2008 a full time Volunteer Service Officer post was funded
via the Library and Information Service to support volunteering
within three BIG lottery and three “re-generate” libraries in
Lancashire for a pilot one year period. A total of 102 volunteers
have subsequently been recruited and are now deployed in Ingol,
Carnforth, Lancaster, St Annes, Haslingden, Colne helping to
support staff in numerous different ways. Examples include:



GILIL - Teens/young people to work on GILIL team during gigs
street team works, collecting emails, selling tickets, ushering,
lighting, film work, general GILIL duties
Digitisation of photos - assist with scanning and recording
Assistance with Baby Bounce and Rhyme sessions
Ways in which to support future development of volunteering after
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
8
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
May 2009 are now being considered.
Recommendation 18: LCLIS conduct a feasibility study of the costs and
benefits of self service (Green)
This features in the 2009 – 2010 Service Plan. Tenders have been
invited from suppliers of self service solutions with the intention of
installing them in six libraries during 2009 – Nelson, Morecambe,
Ormskirk, Chorley, Poulton and Haslingden. A Project Officer is to be
given the task of managing the implementation and evaluating the
project with a view to extending self service should further funding be
available.
Recommendation 19: LCLIS should adopt the following statement in
relation to equality and diversity: (Green)
“Statement 15: LCLIS will provide services to hard to reach groups in the community,
and to anyone who is disadvantaged due to race, age, disability, gender, faith or
sexuality"
Examples of the way in which LCLIS is developing services to meet
the needs of hard to reach groups can be evidenced in a number of
ways:
In Morecambe and Preston, staff are working with partners such as
the Traveller Education Service to devise and deliver services to
the Traveller community. A tailored Reading club for traveller
children based on their interest in horses has proved especially
popular. Staff from the two Districts were awarded £500 from
ALLIS (Accessing Lancashire’s Library and Information Services)
to spend on the services they are developing.
In Preston, as in other districts, outreach work with hard to reach
groups is developing - collections of books have been placed at St
Augustines, The Foxton Street Homeless Centre and Oxford Street
Homeless Centre. In Lancaster staff have placed collections of
books in the police station.
Services to the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender)
community are being developed, especially in Preston. This
includes an increasing selection of stock, making available the
“Pink Paper”, and celebrating LGBT month. The Harris was the
first library to be awarded the Navajo Charter.
Recommendation 20: LCLIS services to minority ethnic communities
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
9
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
are extended to include emerging communities of immigrants and
migrant workers, particularly from Eastern Europe. (Green)
Welcome packs which have been produced in various languages
continue to be popular and in demand. Collections of books in
East European languages, particularly Polish, have been bought
for a number of libraries and are proving popular. The People’s
Network computers are also popular with people from Eastern
Europe who use them to stay in contact with family and friends at
home. English as a second language classes are offered in some
libraries including the Harris Library.
We offer Language Line, a telephone interpreting service, which
enables staff to communicate with individuals who speak little
English. We also offer Global Writer software which enables
people of major languages to write in their native language
The most recent development was a live webchat between the
“Wordy Women” Reading Group which meets at the Harris Library
and the Kiev British Council Reading Group.
Recommendation 21: LCLIS develop a strategy to ensure that any child
or adult with a disability or learning difficulty has equal opportunity to
access the same services in all libraries (Green)
Services are provided to people who are unable to access their
local library by the Home Library Service staff and volunteers, also
by Library Link in the North and East of the county. These are
specially adapted vehicles for older people and people with
physical disabilities.
SMILE and People’s Centres are based in some of the larger
libraries – the former offers a service to young people with
disabilities, the latter provides a range of adaptive technology to
enable anyone with a disability to access services.
Many of the larger libraries offer the Book Prescription Service
which provides books on mental health issues and self-help to
customers who have been referred by their GP.
Specific examples of work being done in libraries include library
staff in Preston working closely with Shaw Trust and the Bridge
Centre (Mental Health Centre) and offering job shadowing
opportunities for people with disabilities.
A service to Visually Impaired People is offered through all
libraries. A Reading Group specifically for Visually Impaired People
is held once a month at Fulwood. Transport is provided by LCC
Transport and the groups are facilitated by the RNIB and
Galloways.
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
10
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
Recommendation 22: Review services to people in their homes and
older people living in care (Amber)
This features in the Service Plan for 2009 – 2010. Work has begun
on reviewing our service to older people. This will include a
detailed review of the Home Library Service (HLS) and the Library
Link service which operates in the East and North of the County.
We will also be identifying areas of best practice which can be
extended countywide. Various options will be considered as part of
the review to ensure that people who are unable to visit their local
library still receive an excellent service.
Recommendation 23: LCLIS review and update the guidelines regarding
service provision as related to population (Amber)
The existing guidelines remain in place until such time as it is
appropriate to carry out a full review. Until the new structure is
firmly embedded and the planned changes in service delivery
implemented, there is little to be gained in carrying out this
exercise. It is a piece of work which will feature in the 2010 – 2011
service plan.
Recommendation 24: The Cabinet Member for Adult and Community
Services takes note of the Minister for Culture’s comments (Green)
County Councillor Chris Cheetham’s response was “I have done
but the reciprocity of understanding the funding dilemmas of local
government would be welcomed.”
The Acting Head of Service ensures that the Portfolio Holder is
made aware of any major developments and of any statements
made by senior politicians relating to the sector and/or service. One
example is the current review of libraries being carried out at
Government level.
Recommendation 25: LCLIS liaise with other authorities adopting similar
solutions to budget pressures with the aim of learning from each other
and developing best practice alternatives (Green)
There are a number of forums where both officers and elected members
have the opportunity to discuss and share best practice. One example is
the growing popularity of Members only sessions at the Public Library
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
11
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
Authorities conference where elected members from different political
parties work together to find solutions to shared issues within the service.
Members and officers from other authorities have also visited the county
and vice versa. One example was a visit to Bolton to share experiences of
the Overview and Scrutiny Review.
The Acting Head of Service is an active member of the Society of Chief
Librarians (SCL) and uses the forum to share and learn from best practice
relating to all aspects of the service.
Recommendation 26: LCLIS conduct a detailed investigation of
alternative models of delivery particularly in relation to services to rural
areas. This investigation should include an examination of the Caton,
Wheatley Lane and Cumbria models as well as the wider role of libraries
in delivering information as part of a Customer Access Strategy (Green)
The service was successful in securing Pathfinder in Practice funding of
£60,000 during 2007 to pilot alternative models of service delivery in rural
areas. The Rural Policy Unit supported the project by funding a Project
Manager. The Project Manager worked with representatives of
communities in Caton, Dolphinholme, Chipping and Dunsop Bridge to
develop alternative models of service based on the needs of those
communities. These are now being evaluated as part of a wider review of
services to rural areas.
Recommendation 27: The Cabinet Member for Adult and Community
Services consults with Lancashire Locals on options for future service
delivery (Green)
Engagement with Lancashire Locals is regarded as being an
important element of the service's community engagement strategy
and reports are regularly submitted to all Lancashire Locals. These
have ranged from general updates of the performance of libraries,
to reports which show progress against the Task Group
recommendations at District level. Specific reports, requiring a
decision by Lancashire Local have included the closure of three
libraries in Burnley to enable the revenue costs to be available to
open a new facility in one of the BSF schools; the change in
opening hours at Savick; the closure of the County Information
Centres at Clitheroe, Chorley and Lytham. The latest consultation
has been regarding Phase Three of the "Regenerate" project and
the views of Lancashire Locals will be taken into consideration
when the final decisions are taken regarding libraries to be included
in the 2009 programme.
Jerry Smith, DPO in Rossendale, wrote “I just wanted to say that I think your
report to Lancashire Local Rossendale next week is just about the best LL
report I’ve seen in three years! Really clear and informative and raising some
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
12
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
real issues and questions for members to get to grips with. Many thanks!”
Recommendation 28: Steps are taken to ensure that repair and
maintenance priorities are service led (Amber)
County Councillor Chris Cheetham’s response was “This is a
corporate issue but is important.”
Since the Task Group there has been a significant increase in the
repairs and maintenance work carried out on library buildings with
Property Group appreciating and responding to the poor state of
some library buildings. One recent example is the refurbishment of
Chorley Library which was achieved through Repairs and
Maintenance funding.
Recommendation 29: Capital receipts from recent library closures be
reinvested into LCLIS (Amber)
County Councillor Chris Cheetham’s response was “They are not
likely to be a lot and again this is a corporate issue. A central
capital “pot” for receipts probably helps the service more than it
harms.”
Capital receipts from library closures have been returned to the centre,
however, the service has received substantial capital funding over the
past three years.
Recommendation 30: Cabinet develop a long term capital investment
programme for the library estate (Amber)
County Councillor Chris Cheetham’s response was “A programme
is easy – delivering it is more difficult! However, there may be
sources of money, which we will investigate before my detailed
response.”
As a result of the Task Group Review of libraries and the
involvement of senior officers and the Portfolio Holder in the
process, the capital needs requirements of the service were
highlighted.
The service has been successful in securing capital funding for the
last three years:
 In 2007 £250,000 resulted in Ingol and Carnforth libraries
being remodelled to create flexible space based on
community need. This was the start of the "Regenerate"
programme.
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
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Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
 In 2008, the service received £1.5 million to continue the
programme.
Phase Two of "Regenerate" includes
Crawshawbooth, Euxton, Poulton, Oswaldtwistle, Briercliffe
and Ormskirk libraries. In addition, capital funding to rebuild
Heysham library has been made available.

In 2009, the service will receive £930,000 of capital funding.
Lancashire Locals have been consulted regarding the short
list for Phase Three and their recommendations will be put
to the Portfolio Holder at a Decision Making Meeting in the
summer.
We would urge that the Review Group recommend that the capital
funding to regenerate libraries continues as a priority over the next four
years in order that the majority of communities benefit from a library
which is fit for purpose.
Recommendation 31: Develop an ongoing programme of
refurbishments (Amber)
In 2007 the service received £250,000 which enabled Ingol and
Carnforth libraries to be "Regenerated". In 2008/09, £1.5 million of
capital funding means that there will be investment in Crawshawbooth,
Euxton, Poulton, Oswaldtwistle, Briercliffe, Ormskirk libraries. This is
in addition to funding finally being made available for a replacement
library at Heysham. In the coming year, capital funding of £ 930,000 is
available to continue the investment in the library infrastructure.
In addition to internal capital funding of £197,000, a £1.39 million bid to
the Big Lottery Community Libraries Fund has been successful and
building work began on the three libraries – Haslingden, Colne and
Lancaster at the start of 2009.
A total of 22 libraries will have been refurbished as a result of either
internal or external funding. This leaves a further 54 libraries needing
some investment, this includes the issue of a major library in Preston
which has been the subject of an unsuccessful PFI bid.
Recommendation 32: Signage should be replaced within a rolling
improvement programme. New signage should be more visible, contain
the county council logo and give the buildings a clearer identity (Red)
A new internal logo has been developed as part of the "Regenerate"
project and this is being applied to all libraries undergoing
refurbishment. The issue of external branding has proved
problematical with the Corporate Centre requiring only the County
Council logo.
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14
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
Therefore, this is currently a work in progress with negotiations
ongoing with Corporate Communications to ensure a consistent
corporate external image. Haslingden Library will be the first to feature
the agreed external signage.
Recommendation 33: LCLIS adopt a medium term programme of
providing refreshments, informal seating areas and toilet facilities in
public libraries (Amber)
Vending machines were introduced into six libraries at the beginning of
2007; informal seating areas are now part of the internal design of
"regenerated " libraries and have been incorporated in to the design of
any library which has undergone improvements; toilet facilities have
been or are being, installed where feasible, most recently at Chorley,
Ingol, Kingsfold.
Recommendation 34: The county council explore the possibility of
funding a joint resource to market LCLIS and other services within the
Adult Learning and Cultural Services Group (Red)
Though this recommendation has not yet been actioned, there are
signs of increased partnership working with other services within the
Culture block which may lead to joint marketing of the services.
A Culture and Sport Improvement Plan will result from a wide ranging
self assessment of culture and sport within the County Council. It is
possible that joint marketing is one of the recommendations.
Recommendation 35: A strategic marketing plan be developed. The plan
should focus on the branding of buildings to create a consistent
recognisable image aimed at increasing people’s knowledge and use of
the Service (Amber)
See Recommendation 32. The Regenerate project has created a set
of design principles which means that each library which is refurbished
has the same basic "look". Internal branding is included in this "look",
and, following negotiations with Corporate Communications, the
external branding has recently been agreed
Recommendation 36: There should be an ongoing extended programme
of training and staff development to support the delivery of a quality
service (Green)
A workforce development plan is in place for the service. As part of
the restructure process training and development plans are being
designed for each new post to ensure that all post holders have the
right knowledge, skills and abilities to carry out their duties effectively.
One example is all senior managers having the opportunity to attend a
bespoke leadership course.
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Item 3 Appendix 'A'
15
Summary of performance against the 36 recommendations made by
the Overview and Scrutiny Task Group in September 2006
The service is one of the few Library authorities in the country to
have been recognised as a centre to provide NVQs in Information
and Library services. The centre has just been externally verified
and has achieved an A- rating. The External Verifier expressed
their delight with the team and the work that is delivered.
Staff across the county have the opportunity to apply to do NVQs in
Information and Library Service, and Management. They have also
recently been given the opportunity to apply to do tailored ICT
courses – ICTQ – a diploma in ICT qualification, and an advanced
ICTQ.
The Senior Management Team have agreed a new Customer Care
Strategy which invests in structured customer care training for all
frontline staff from induction onward.
Staff are also working through a specific library programme called
Frontline which relates to the promotion of stock and working with
readers as advisers.
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